Handling in Rugby

[SlyFly]

Watching he Bulls game again, I just cant help but notice how pathetic handling has become in Rugby, I think it started last year or before that, but this year it's appalling...

Not just the Bulls in this game, but EVERYONE... Wynand Olivier although having a good game, has dodgy ball control, even Jean de Villiers. What has happened to the basic skill of being able to catch a ball?

Has the ball changed over the past few years that decreases grip or something? It really is pathetic and Im sad to say that South African teams are the most guilty even though the overseas teams do it aswell...

Rugby use to be an enjoyable sport to watch, but with all the handling errors it has become a stop start sport, and in this instance it's not the referee's fault.

Sorry for the rant, just needed to get it of my chest.

 

[Pitbull]

Watching he Bulls game again, I just cant help but notice how pathetic handling has become in Rugby, I think it started last year or before that, but this year it's appalling...

Not just the Bulls in this game, but EVERYONE... Wynand Olivier although having a good game, has dodgy ball control, even Jean de Villiers. What has happened to the basic skill of being able to catch a ball?

Has the ball changed over the past few years that decreases grip or something? It really is pathetic and Im sad to say that South African teams are the most guilty even though the overseas teams do it aswell...

Rugby use to be an enjoyable sport to watch, but with all the handling errors it has become a stop start sport, and in this instance it's not the referee's fault.

Sorry for the rant, just needed to get it of my chest.

The thing I think is because they are playing ahead of themselves.

The already plan an action way before they even have the ball, and they are looking at the opposition instead of looking at the ball.

There was the one error by Jaco Pretorius just before the game was over. He was already planning to pass the ball long before he actually picked up the ball. You could see it in the slow-mo the ran after the knock-on. He was looking at where the player was he wanted to pass too and not actually concentrating on getting the ball in hand first. He then knocked it out of his own hands with his knee

 

[SlyFly]

Lets not talk about the Stormers and Tahs game...

 

[DJ...]

I think you'll find the game has changed, not the ball all that much (even though it has changed to help with grip).

The game is played much flatter these days for example which will result in more handling errors. The game is also a lot more loose in general so many more balls played through the hands than before. Kicking game has increased exponentially since the tight game of the past and will also result in more handling errors and with the new ELVs we find much more of the game being played in-field instead of touch-finding kicks. Balls are passed coming out of a tackle more which induces more handling errors. etc.

All in all I reckon the point is that the game is not as tight as it used to be. In fact if you take that all into account the players probably have better hands than they used to be. The one thing I have noticed is that the loose forwards of the modern game have the hands of backline players and even the tight forwards are a lot more hand-eye co-ordinated...